


Ramblings of a Drunk Paladin

by MandaWrites



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Fluff, Fluff that will probably make you cry, Gen, Platonic Relationships, Team Bonding, Team as Family, alcohol use, platonic everything - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-23
Updated: 2017-02-23
Packaged: 2018-09-26 12:32:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,434
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9896627
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MandaWrites/pseuds/MandaWrites
Summary: After drinking an entire bottle of a mystery alien alcohol, Keith gets wasted and tells everyone exactly what he thinks about them. Pure fluff. Everything is intended to be platonic unless you want to read more into it.





	

**Author's Note:**

> I started this a while ago and forgot about it until I rearranged some files on my computer the other day and decided to finish it. Anyway, this is based on a headcanon I have that Keith is really, REALLY affectionate when he’s drunk. I touched on this idea slightly in one of my other fics, but I wanted to explore this a bit more. Drunk Keith can be quite fun to write lol.

After years of fighting Zarkon and freeing planets, the paladins had gotten used to receiving various gifts and honors from the inhabitants of the planets they had freed. They would accept these gifts gratefully, then wait until they were alone in space before dividing the gifts among themselves.  
  
“I wonder what this tastes like!” Lance pondered as he held a bottle of some sort of dark liquid.  
  
“I suppose there’s only one way to find out,” responded Coran as he pulled out seven glasses.  
  
Lance opened the bottle and poured a small amount of liquid in each glass as Coran distributed the samples to everyone.  
  
“Ugh, gross!” Pidge squealed.  
  
“It’s so bitter!” added Hunk.  
  
“I… kind of like it,” Keith replied sheepishly. He was met with the shocked and confused stares of his teammates.  
  
“Fine, then Keith gets the mystery drink!” Lance shouted as he practically forced the bottle into Keith’s hands.  
  
Keith just shrugged before drinking from the bottle directly.  
  
“Hey, look at this! They gave us a bunch of some kind of fruit!” exclaimed Hunk excitedly.  
  
“Hell yeah, looks like we’re not having any of that food goo for the next few days!” Lance started digging through the fruit to see if there was anything familiar looking.  
  
“I’ll have you know that ‘food goo,’ as you humans call it, is _packed_ with nutrients vital for the optimal health for you paladins!” Coran huffed indignantly.  
  
“That doesn’t make it any less bland,” Pidge retorted.  
  
Keith chuckled as he listened to his teammates - no, his _family_ \- bicker. It took him a long time to get used to having so many people around, but after being part of the team for so long, he wouldn’t trade a single one of them for anything in the universe. It was a strange feeling, but it was nice to have so many people around who cared for him. Voltron, he had long since decided, was the best thing to ever happen to him.  
  
A small but genuine smile crept across his lips as he took another sip from the bottle. The team had just had a major victory in the fight against Zarkon, and he was surrounded by the happy faces of the people he loved most. He was feeling pretty good.  
  
“I suppose your… culinary endeavors do seem to boost team morale,” Coran was saying when Keith started paying attention again. “Even if I disagree on what food is _supposed_ to taste like.”  
  
“Hunk is an amazing chef!” For reasons that Keith could not understand, he felt the need to elaborate. “He’s more than just an amazing chef, though, he’s the glue that holds our team together! Voltron wouldn’t be what it is without Hunk’s support of us!”  
  
“Aw, thanks Keith! You can be really nice sometimes!”  
  
Keith smiled and nodded at Hunk before taking another large sip from his bottle.  
  
“Yeah, who knew Keith had a heart under that mullet,” Lance jested.  
  
“Wha- of course I have a heart!”  
  
“Maybe, but it’s so well hidden under several layers of stoic and emo.”  
  
Instead of getting angry like everyone expected, Keith burst out laughing and clasped a hand on Lance’s shoulder. “Lance, you’re always good for a good laugh. Also, you’re really an amazing sharpshooter. Seriously, I don’t even know how many times you’ve saved my ass.”  
  
“Guys… Keith just… _complimented_ me. I think he’s drunk.”  
  
Keith wobbled slightly before suddenly realizing this his now-empty bottle had been taken from his hands.  
  
“I’m unfamiliar with this language, but it’s similar to Molamian so if I’m reading this right this drink _does_ have a high concentration of alcohol.”  
  
Keith beamed down at his shorter teammate as he clumsily ruffled her hair.  
  
“You are a genius, Pidge!”  
  
“I know,” Pidge smirked as she handed the bottle to Coran who wanted to inspect it further.  
  
“I still- I just can’t believe you learned so many alien languages so quickly! You’re so smart and determined, I’ve never seen you give up on anything! And, you’re really beautiful.”  
  
Pidge blushed at that last compliment. “Um, thanks,” she said before awkwardly turning away.  
  
“Pidge is right,” Coran said as he finished inspecting the bottle. “Maybe we should have read the label before letting Keith drink this whole bottle in one night. This alcohol is very potent.”  
  
“Is he going to be alright?” asked Allura. “I know that too much alcohol can kill a human.”  
  
“I’ll be fine, Allura!” Keith was slurring his words now. “You don’t need to worry about me! You already have enough on your mind, being such a great leader and all. You’re so strong and inspiring! And if it wasn’t for you-“ Keith hiccuped. “If it wasn’t for you, there would be no Voltron. We wouldn’t be a team if it wasn’t for you.”  
  
“He’ll be just fine, but he’s going to have a nasty hangover tomorrow,” Coran assured everyone. He moved to steady Keith who seemed to be getting more drunk by the minute as the alcohol entered his system. Keith pulled the older man into a tight hug.  
  
“Coran! You’re always looking out for us! No one, none of us appreciate you enough! You have so much wisdom that you give freely and you just _care_ about us so much! We’re so lucky to have you!”  
  
Coran gently patted Keith’s back, unsure of what to do. No one was used to Keith being so affectionate. Finally, Shiro pulled Keith away and wrapped a supportive arm around him, helping him walk toward the paladin’s quarters.  
  
“Keith, I think it’s time for you to go to bed.”  
  
Keith stumbled and leaned into him.  
  
“Shiro. My life-my life would’ve been so different without you. I can’t thank you enough for everything you’ve done for me. You’ve always been there for me, no matter what. Even when going through your own problems, you still always had time for me. I’ve always been able to come to you with anything.”  
  
Shiro let out a small smile before turning to address the whole team. “It’s getting late, we should all get to bed. We need our rest after that last battle.”  
  
Everyone in the room let out small yawns and murmurs of agreement. Keith stumbled around until he was able to face them. “I love you guys. I mean it. I love you all so much! You’re all great! I love you!”  
  
Shiro gently guided Keith away from his team and through the corridors until they reached his bedroom. He managed to get Keith safely to his bed before helping him take off his shoes and tucking him under the covers.  
  
“Shiro.” Keith’s eyes were wet with tears that were about to fall. “I love them. I love them so much.”  
  
“I know.” Shiro turned to leave.  
  
“Shiro!” Keith called, a little quieter this time.  
  
“What?” Shiro turned back to face Keith.  
  
“I… I have a family. I have people who care about me, and I care about them.”  
  
Shiro hesitated for a moment before patting Keith’s forehead.  
  
“I know.”  
  
“I have a family,” Keith muttered to himself as he drifted off to sleep.  
  
Once he was sure Keith was asleep, Shiro silently left the room.  
  


* * *

  
  
Keith let out a long, low groan as soon as the lights from the common area reached his eyes.  
  
“Well good morning sleepyhead! Or, rather, good afternoon!” Lance called.  
  
Keith only grunted in response as he stumbled to the couch, clutching his water packet tightly.  
  
“How do you feel?” Hunk asked. “Coran said you’d have a killer hangover today.”  
  
The glare that Keith shot in Hunk’s direction said everything that Hunk needed to know.  
  
“You should be glad that Shiro always gives us the day off after a major battle,” Pidge said.  
  
“Shut up!” Keith growled as he held his throbbing head.  
  
“Seriously though, cleaning puke out of your lion is no fun, just ask Hunk!”  
  
“Hey!”  
  
“Lance, I swear I am going to kill you.”  
  
“Man, drunk Keith is more fun than hungover Keith,” Lance whined. “Last night you were all friendly with everyone! You even were nice to _me_!”  
  
Keith rolled his eyes. “I don’t remember any of that.”  
  
“Really? You were like ‘I love you guys! I love you so much!’”  
  
“Yeah, I definitely don’t remember that.”  
  
“Well, you were pretty drunk. You couldn’t even stand up on your own,” Pidge reasoned.  
  
Keith rubbed his eyes. “It’s too bright and noisy in here. I’m going back to my room.” He got up and headed toward the door, but paused to briefly glance back at his teammates.  
  
“I have a family,” he whispered to himself.

**Author's Note:**

> Fun fact: I used an alien language generator to come up with the name of the alien language Pidge referred to, so if that word means anything in another language (real or fictional) that is completely unintended.


End file.
